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Old 03-02-2021, 04:51 PM  
Pebbles82
Hamster Antics
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 23,533
Default Re: UK hamster owners - any users of pennine large rat cage?

Yes it will maybe settle down when your hammy has adjusted . If it’s all new bedding and a big change it could take a couple of weeks. For another time, a tip is to move the old bedding over abd not clean anything at changeover time so it smells familiar. They are still a bit freaked but it wears off quicker.

But for the two week settling now it would be best not to do any cleaning (it’ll be fine!). If it gets a bit whiffy after a week then you could just spot clean the pee area (often a corner of the cage) by taking a handful of substrate out abd adding a new handful and mix it in a bit. If you can’t see an obvious pee area just leave it for now!

The main thing is not to disturb things in the cage fir that couple of weeks or it has to start again with another couple of weeks. Once he has a little routine in the cage, a cosy nest built etc he will feel settled. Is it a he or a she? So best not to move anything round (unless it’s essential for safety) or take anything out. They usually accept something new being added though as long as it doesn’t mean taking something away they‘be just claimed as theirs, or moving things around. If you’re using the HH as it comes then he might take a while to decide where to nest as the houses are small. They usually nest in the penthouse on top and block the tubes up! Then it becomes a big stinky mess and needs cleaning out too often (clean outs stress them).

But after a couple of weeks you can look at the odd minor adaptation maybe. Most people remove the penthouse and tubes and block off the tube holes and add a large ish house at floor level, open underneath and sat on the substrate. That keeps things naturally cleaner and more hygienic/aired in the house. They will usually use a litter tray too so then you just empty that once or twice a week. It’s only their pee that is smelly.

Hope he settles soon! Scatter feeding can help distract from bad chewing as well. You still put food in the bowl as usual but scatter a bit too - they like to forage fir it. Not sure if you have a different wheel but it usually means taking out one of the shelves to fit a larger wheel in. The 28cm trixie wheel is a good fit. The one supplied with the cage is too small and that can lead to bar biting too.

It’s a very nice cage with a lovely big front door that helps with interaction and taming. Also just keep talking to him gently through the bars so he gets used to your scent and presence.
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